John Oliver is not a fan of Jared Kushner.
Last April, the Last Week Tonight host ran a lengthy segment on how the president’s son-in-law and his wife, Ivanka, are wildly unqualified for their positions as White House advisers and should not be seen as moderating influences on President Trump, concluding, “If they are the reason you are sleeping at night, you should probably still be awake.” Some months later, Oliver wished Kushner would be indicted by special prosecutor Robert Mueller in his ongoing Trump-Russia probe.
On Sunday night, while his late-night pal Jimmy Kimmel hosted the Academy Awards, Oliver dedicated a chunk of his HBO program to the past week of White House chaos, which “even by current White House standards was a mess.”
ADVERTISEMENT
There was the revelation that Trump mocks Attorney General Jeff Sessions behind his back with the nickname “Mr. Magoo.” Oliver was unimpressed with POTUS’ comedy chops.
“First, leave it to Trump to mock Sessions as a doddering old man even though Trump is—and this is true—six months older than him,” said Oliver. “And look, calling him ‘Mr. Magoo’ isn’t just mean, it’s lazy. If you want to hurt Sessions, try. Use your imagination. Call him ‘Confederate Smurf,’ or ‘a casting director’s second choice for an incontinence act,’ or ‘the result of a one-night stand between Strom Thurmond and a golden raisin.’ At least make an effort!”
Next came the recently departed White House communications director, Hope Hicks (“girl that started that mean rumor about you in high school”), and former Trump caddie turned White House director of social media Dan Scavino, who looks suspicious in every photo Oliver found of him.
But the Brit saved the lion’s share of his vitriol for Kushner, who this week had his security clearance downgraded from “Top Secret” to “Secret,” placing him lower on the intel chain than the White House calligrapher.
“Wow, that is humiliating,” offered Oliver. “What’s crazy is, Kushner has reportedly been on interim security clearance ever since he joined the White House, and that is for pretty good reason.”
Yes, according to numerous reports, Kushner omitted millions of dollars in assets in his financial disclosure forms, as well as more than 100 foreign contacts.
“So in other words, Kushner screwed up some important paperwork, keeps changing his personal wealth, and casually overlooked hundreds of foreigners. He truly is his father-in-law’s son. The only real difference is: One of them has electrifying sexual chemistry with Ivanka Trump, and the other is Jared Kushner,” cracked Oliver.
If that weren’t enough, The Washington Post reported that officials in several foreign countries, including China, Israel, Mexico, and the United Arab Emirates, saw Kushner as a “naïve” asset that could potentially be compromised.
“Now, the most shocking thing about that is if somehow only four foreign governments thought they could manipulate him,” said Oliver. “How is it not more than that? What nation looked at this man and thought, ‘Forget it! His mind is a fortress.’”
